Free Mystery of Tally-Ho Cottage by Enid Blyton Page A

hidden in Tally-Ho House,’ said a third. ‘Foreigner Found Breaking in.’
    Fatty stared at these headlines in the utmost dismay. Goodness - what in the world had Goon been saying? Some reporter must have got hold of him last night and had asked if there were any news about the Lorenzos - and Goon hadn’t been able to stop himself from enlarging on his encounter with the disguised Fatty.
    Fatty’s heart sank down into his boots. Why, Goon hadn’t set even a finger on him! He had only followed Ern, who had been following him. Suppose Superintendent Jenks got to hear of this?
    Fatty went round to see the others as soon as he could. They hadn’t known, of course, that he was going to disguise himself as an Indian, and had been most astonished to see the papers. Larry and Daisy had gone to call for Pip and Bets, on their way down to Fatty’s, and they were very pleased to see him.
    ‘Seen the papers?’ said Pip, as soon as Fatty came in at the playroom door, with Buster at his heels. Fatty nodded. The others stared at him in surprise.
    ‘What’s up? What are you looking like that for!’ asked Larry. ‘We were jolly pleased about it - it looks as if something might happen here after all!’
    Fatty sat down and groaned in such a desperate manner that Bets ran to him at once. ‘What is it?’ Are you ill, Fatty?’
    ‘I feel ill,’ said Fatty. ‘I was the Indian - didn’t you guess? I thought I’d disguise myself as a foreign student, and just go for a little snoop - and of course first I bumped into old Larkin and gave him a shock - and then Ern discovers me and tells old Goon, who happens to be interviewing Mr. Larkin - and then Ern is told to shadow me so that Goon can see where I go.’
    The others listened in horror. ‘Fatty! And now you’re in all the papers!’
    ‘Yes - but mercifully nobody knows I was the Indian - except Ern. I told him. Wish I hadn’t now. He’ll never be able to keep his mouth shut. And oh - I’ve just thought of something else. Oh, my word!’
    ‘What? What is it?’ said Bets, quite overcome with all this. All kinds of dreadful ideas filled her mind.
    ‘Old Larkin met me - and I asked him where my old friends the Lorenzos had gone,’ said poor Fatty. ‘And when he asked me for my name I told him an idiotic one - and he wrote it down! If Goon gets it out of him, and realizes the Indian was a spoof - in other words, me - there’ll be an awful lot of fat in the fire!’
    ‘What name did you give’ asked Larry.
    ‘Mr. Hoho-Ha of Bong Castle, India,’ said Fatty with another groan.
    There was a moment’s silence - and then a squeal of laughter from Daisy. ‘Oh, Fatty! Oh Mr. Hoho-Ha! Do you mean to say old Larkin really wrote that down?’
    ‘Rather,’ said Fatty, still unable to raise even a smile. ‘It’s no laughing matter, Daisy. If Ern splits on me, I’m in the soup - jolly hot soup too. We’re sure to get the reporters down here then, interviewing me as the Boy who Deceived the Police. Frightful! Why did I do it?’
    ‘Ern won’t give you away,’ said Bets.
    ‘I think he would,’ said Pip. ‘He’s not very brave and he’s so scared of Goon that he’d say anything to get away from him.’
    There came a knock at the door. Everyone turned their heads, expecting they hardly knew what. Goon perhaps - except that he wouldn’t knock. He’d walk straight in!
    The door opened. It was Ern! Ern, looking very flushed and rather fearful.
    ‘Ern! We were just talking about you,’ said Bets. ‘Have you split on Fatty? You haven’t told Goon that Fatty was the Indian, have you?’
    ‘Coo, no,’ said Ern, much to everyone’s relief. ‘Uncle’s been at me like anything this morning - but I never said a word about Fatty. What do you take me for?’
    ‘I knew you wouldn’t, Ern,’ said Bets.
    ‘I just came to tell you something,’ said Ern. ‘My uncle’s gone all funny-like this morning. Don’t know what to make of him.’
    ‘Exactly what do you mean?’ asked Fatty, interested.
    ‘Well - he came up to my Aunt Woosh’s place this